DIY Solar

Dan and Don AdamsEarthineer

DIY Solar

Dan and Don Adams Earthineer

We all would like to be off the grid, but the costs are prohibitive ... or are they? Dan and Don Adams have been building their own solar panels for years. They go step by step through building your own system, the decisions they made, and how they trimmed thousands off the price. This year, they are talking about making their own batteries. | , Speaker BioDan Adams is the founder of Earthineer, a peer-to-peer social marketplace for food and farm.
Don Adams is an electrical engineer, and is responsible for much of the more technical DIY content on Earthineer.

DIY Aquaponics

Dan and Don AdamsEarthineer

DIY Aquaponics

Dan and Don Adams Earthineer

Aquaponics combines aquaculture (for raising fish) and hydroponics (for growing plants). Join Earthineer's Dan and Don Adams in their latest DIY project. This presentation covers the basics, and you learn how you can build your own starter system. | , Speaker BioDan Adams is the founder of Earthineer, where homesteaders connect, learn and trade. He is a programmer by profession, and an earthineer by passion.
Don Adams is an electrical engineer, and is responsible for much of the more technical DIY content on Earthineer.

Create an Apothecary Garden

Joanne BaumanPrairie Magic Herbals

Create an Apothecary Garden

Joanne Bauman Prairie Magic Herbals

A medicinal plant garden provides affordable, sustainable and indispensable herbs to remedy a variety of conditions, from prevention to times of emergencies. Growing herbs to meet your needs does not have to be difficult or take up a large garden space. Learn about various plants to grow, how to get started, design tips, choosing plants or seeds, and how to decide what to plant based on common issues you and your family need to remedy, such as easing tummy upset, aiding sleep, calming nerves, relieving pain, reducing bruises and sprains, easing cold, flu and fevers, calming nerves, easing bites and stings, disinfecting wounds, soothing burns, and more. | , Speaker BioJoanne Bauman, a Kansas herbalist, shares the gift of the green nations (healing food and medicine plants) in the Wise Woman Tradition of healing. Bauman (of Prairie Magic Herbals) teaches herb classes, grows and wildcrafts medicine plants, creates herbal preparations, and does consultations. Her love of the plants and easygoing teaching style makes learning and using your own herbal remedies accessible to everyone. Her website, www.PrairieMagicHerbals.com, conveys her thoughts about plants and herbalism. She first learned about plants from her pharmacist father, has a master’s degree in clinical psychology, and applied her personal experiences to counsel others in a physical rehabilitation hospital. Bauman serves as the coordinator of the Herbalists Without Borders (HWB) Community Herbal Apothecary Project and as coordinator of the Kansas chapter of HWB.

Herbs for Pain Relief

Joanne BaumanPrairie Magic Herbals

Herbs for Pain Relief

Joanne Bauman Prairie Magic Herbals

Pain can be stressful, distracting, and in some cases, debilitating. There are many types and causes of pain (e.g., joint, muscle, nerve, tendon) as there are a variety of herbs to reduce pain, stiffness, soreness, fluid and inflammation, and improve function and performance. Join herbalist Joanne Bauman, who draws on both her personal and professional experiences with chronic pain and pain management. Learn numerous plants to ease pain and internal/topical applications, including tinctures, oils, liniments, poultices and bath soaks. | , Speaker BioJoanne Bauman, a Kansas herbalist, shares the gift of the green nations (healing food and medicine plants) in the Wise Woman Tradition of healing. Bauman (of Prairie Magic Herbals) teaches herb classes, grows and wildcrafts medicine plants, creates herbal preparations, and does consultations. Her love of the plants and easygoing teaching style makes learning and using your own herbal remedies accessible to everyone. Her website, www.PrairieMagicHerbals.com, conveys her thoughts about plants and herbalism. She first learned about plants from her pharmacist father, has a master’s degree in clinical psychology, and applied her personal experiences to counsel others in a physical rehabilitation hospital. Bauman serves as coordinator of the Herbalists Without Borders (HWB) Community Herbal Apothecary Project and coordinator of the Kansas Chapter of HWB.

Herbal Vinegars, Elixirs and Oxymels

Joanne BaumanPrairie Magic Herbals

Herbal Vinegars, Elixirs and Oxymels

Joanne Bauman Prairie Magic Herbals

Herb vinegars, elixirs and oxymels are simple to make, offer a wonderful combination of sweet and sour, and coax out the medicinal constituents of herbs in a much different way. Explore how to make these preparations, as well as uses and benefits with various herbs and recipes. These honey- and vinegar-based remedies offer antimicrobial, antiviral and immune-boosting properties, ease respiratory conditions, relieve cold and flu, address fungal issues, support digestive tract health and can be used topically for skin and first-aid issues. | , Speaker BioJoanne Bauman, a Kansas herbalist, shares the gift of the green nations (healing food and medicine plants) in the Wise Woman Tradition of healing. Bauman (of Prairie Magic Herbals) teaches herb classes, grows and wildcrafts medicine plants, creates herbal preparations, and does consultations. Her love of the plants and easygoing teaching style makes learning and using your own herbal remedies accessible to everyone. Her website, www.PrairieMagicHerbals.com, conveys her thoughts about plants and herbalism. She first learned about plants from her pharmacist father, has a master’s degree in clinical psychology, and applied her personal experiences to counsel others in a physical rehabilitation hospital. Bauman serves as coordinator for the Herbalists Without Borders (HWB) Community Herbal Apothecary Project and coordinator of the Kansas HWB chapter.

Talking Turkey

Marjorie BenderThe Livestock Conservancy

Talking Turkey

Marjorie Bender The Livestock Conservancy

Heritage turkeys have made a remarkable comeback onto the American table and offer a great niche opportunity for farmers. Learn the basics of breed selection, sourcing poults, and husbandry for turkeys being raised for the holiday market. | , Speaker BioMarjie Bender has a Master of Education in agricultural science from the University of California-Davis. She has been involved in sustainable agriculture since 1991, and has more than 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She coordinated the first Livestock Conservancy poultry census and led their conservation efforts to recover heritage turkeys and Colonial Spanish horses in America.

Extraordinary Equines

Marjorie BenderThe Livestock Conservancy

Extraordinary Equines

Marjorie Bender The Livestock Conservancy

Whether you are looking for an equine for the plow, driving, endurance, therapy, or for the trail, the right heritage breed equine is out there for you! Learn about the variety of choices and how finding the appropriate breed for your skill and needs can make the dream of ownership a delightful reality. | , Speaker BioMarjie Bender has a Master of Education in Agricultural Science from the University of California-Davis. She has been involved in sustainable agriculture since 1991, and she has more than 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She coordinated the first Livestock Conservancy poultry census and led their conservation efforts to recover heritage turkeys and Colonial Spanish horses in America.

The Basics of Heritage Hog Production

Jeannette BerangerThe Livestock Conservancy

The Basics of Heritage Hog Production

Jeannette Beranger The Livestock Conservancy

Heritage pigs are hot with today's consumers and a welcome addition to small-scale sustainable farms. Discover the wide array of breeds to choose from and how they compare with each other for personality, adaptability, dress out and more. Learn the basics of husbandry, reproduction, processing and marketing that will make your endeavor a success. | , Speaker BioJeannette Beranger is a program manager for The Livestock Conservancy. She came to the conservancy with more than 20 years of experience working as an animal professional in veterinary and zoological institutions and has been with the conservancy for more than a decade. She uses the knowledge to plan and implement breed conservation programs. At home, she maintains a heritage breeds farm with a focus on rare breed chickens and horses.

I Want Chickens but Where Do I Start?

Jeannette BerangerThe Livestock Conservancy

I Want Chickens but Where Do I Start?

Jeannette Beranger The Livestock Conservancy

With the amazing array of heritage chicken breeds available today, it can be complicated deciding which is most appropriate for your land, climate and needs. Learn which questions to ask before committing to a breed, and explore the diversity of chickens to choose from. | , Speaker BioJeannette Beranger is a program manager for The Livestock Conservancy. She came to the conservancy with more than 20 years of experience working as an animal professional in veterinary and zoological institutions. She has been with the conservancy for a decade and uses the knowledge to plan and implement breed conservation programs. At home, she maintains a heritage breeds farm with a focus on rare breed chickens and horses.

Aquaponic Gardening: Growing fish and vegetables together

Sylvia BernsteinThe Aquaponic Source

Aquaponic Gardening: Growing fish and vegetables together

Sylvia Bernstein The Aquaponic Source

Aquaponics is a revolutionary combination of the best of aquaculture and hydroponics—and an amazingly fun and easy way to raise fish together with organic vegetables, greens, herbs and fruits. Aquaponic systems are much more productive and use up to 90 percent less water than conventional gardens. Other advantages include no weeds, fewer pests, and no watering, fertilizing, bending, digging or heavy lifting!
Starting with an overview of this emerging global movement, author Sylvia Bernstein discusses:
• System options and alternatives, designing systems and selecting components
• The living elements: fish, plants, bacteria and worms
• Putting it all together: starting and maintaining a healthy system
Anyone interested in taking the next step toward self-sufficiency will be fascinated by this entertaining, practical, accessible gardening method. | , Speaker BioSylvia Bernstein is the president and founder of The Aquaponic Source, the leading United States-based company focused entirely on the home aquaponic gardener, and the author of Aquaponic Gardening: A Step-by-Step Guide to Growing Fish and Vegetables Together. She also runs the Aquaponic Gardening Community, the world’s largest online community site dedicated to aquaponics, and is a co-founder and former vice chairman of the Aquaponics Association. She teaches and speaks extensively about aquaponics and its exciting potential.
In her recent past life, Bernstein was the vice president of marketing and product development for AeroGrow International, the makers of the AeroGarden. She was one of the company’s original founders and was instrumental in developing the plant growth technology.
Bernstein has a degree in agricultural economics from the University of California, Davis and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Chicago. She lives in Boulder, Colorado, with her husband, Alan.

Perma-What? How you can create your own paradise homestead with permaculture

Jessi BloomN.W. Bloom EcoLogical Landscapes

Perma-What? How you can create your own paradise homestead with permaculture

Jessi Bloom N.W. Bloom EcoLogical Landscapes

What is permaculture and can it help us to create a more sustainable future? Jessi Bloom shares step-by-step instructions, plus her favorite tips, inspirations and great plants for beautiful and abundant homesteads and lives! | , Speaker BioJessi Bloom is a best-selling author, award-winning ecological designer, Certified Professional Horticulturist and ISA-Certified Arborist who strongly emphasizes ecological systems, sustainability and self-sufficiency in her work. She is passionate about animals, permaculture and making functional gardens beautiful!

Good and Cheap: Eat well on $4 a day

Leanne BrownWorkman Publishing (author)

Good and Cheap: Eat well on $4 a day

Leanne Brown Workman Publishing (author)

How well can a person eat on $4 a day? The answer is surprisingly well: Broiled Tilapia with Lime, Spicy Pulled Pork, Green Chile and Cheddar Quesadillas, Vegetable Jambalaya, Beet and Chickpea Salad ... even desserts like Coconut Chocolate Cookies and Peach Coffee Cake. This workshop reveals enlightening tips drawn from Leanne Brown's award-winning cookbook Good and Cheap. In addition to sharing nutritious recipes that maximize every ingredient and use economical cooking methods, Brown gives tips on shopping; on creating pantry basics; on mastering certain staples (pizza dough, flour tortillas) and saucy extras that make everything taste better (like spice oil and tzatziki); how to give leftovers a delicious makeover; and how to make fundamentally smart, healthful food choices. | , Speaker BioLeanne Brown, a Canadian-born food studies scholar and avid home cook, believes everybody should eat great food every day. For her master’s project as a food studies student at New York University, Brown examined whether it was possible to eat healthy on a food-stamp budget. The cookbook that resulted from this project, Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day, has clearly resonated with people from all walks of life and has made a real impact in the lives of low-income individuals and food stamp recipients. It has been featured in Time and on NPR. The free PDF version has been downloaded more than 500,000 times and, with the help of a highly successful Kickstarter campaign, the print version has made it into the hands of people on a tight budget and to organizations with limited resources. Brown continues to share her delicious recipes on her blog and hopes to play a role in “banishing the mindset that preparing daily meals is a huge chore or takes tremendous skill.”

Is Solar Electricity Right for You?

Dan ChirasThe Evergreen Institute

Is Solar Electricity Right for You?

Dan Chiras The Evergreen Institute

Solar electricity is more affordable than ever, but does it make economic sense for you? What do you need to know to install a solar electric system on your home? If you can’t afford to buy a system, can you lease one or tap into community solar projects to meet your electrical needs sustainably? | , Speaker BioDan Chiras is director of The Evergreen Institute in east central Missouri, where he teaches workshops on a wide range of topics on self-sufficiency and sustainability. Chiras is also author of 32 books and several hundred articles on a wide range of topics that includes residential energy efficiency and renewable energy, sustainable communities, green building and natural building. His talks are fun, inspirational and full of useful information.

Renewable Energy for Homes and Businesses, Part 1

Dan ChirasThe Evergreen Institute

Renewable Energy for Homes and Businesses, Part 1

Dan Chiras The Evergreen Institute

In this two-part workshop, taught by America’s leading expert on renewable energy, learn all about the many clean, reliable and affordable forms of renewable energy that can be used to power your home or business, including energy efficiency, solar electricity, solar thermal, passive solar, small wind, microhydropower and heat pumps. Explore economics of each option and financial incentives and how these renewable energy technologies compete against conventional, polluting forms we currently rely on. | , Speaker BioDan Chiras is director of The Evergreen Institute in east-central Missouri, where he teaches workshops on a wide range of topics on self-sufficiency and sustainability. Chiras is also author of 32 books and several hundred articles on subjects including residential energy efficiency and renewable energy, sustainable communities, green building and natural building. His talks are fun, inspirational and full of useful information.

Renewable Energy for Homes and Businesses, Part 2

Dan ChirasThe Evergreen Institute

Renewable Energy for Homes and Businesses, Part 2

Dan Chiras The Evergreen Institute

In this two-part workshop, taught by America’s leading expert on renewable energy, learn all about the many clean, reliable and affordable forms of renewable energy that can be used to power your home or business, including energy efficiency, solar electricity, solar thermal, passive solar, small wind, microhydropower and heat pumps. Explore economics of each option and financial incentives, and how these renewable energy technologies compete against conventional, polluting forms we currently rely on. | , Speaker BioDan Chiras is director of The Evergreen Institute in east-central Missouri, where he teaches self-sufficiency and sustainability workshops on a wide range of topics. Chiras is also author of 32 books and several hundred articles on subjects including residential energy efficiency and renewable energy, sustainable communities, green building and natural building. His talks are fun, inspirational and full of useful information.

Achieving Complete Self-Sufficiency

Dan ChirasThe Evergreen Institute

Achieving Complete Self-Sufficiency

Dan Chiras The Evergreen Institute

Many people are working toward a life of total self-sufficiency, but the road can be difficult and confusing. There are so many options and there is so much bad information that it boggles the mind. Additionally, there are many aspects of self-sufficiency (such as self-health care, personal fitness and transportation) that people overlook. Dan Chiras, one of the nation’s leading experts on self-sufficiency, outlines the key steps you must take to completely meet your family’s needs for energy, water, food, health care, income and transportation to thrive during major economic or ecological catastrophe or simply to forge a totally sustainable lifestyle. | , Speaker BioDan Chiras is director of The Evergreen Institute in east central Missouri, where he teaches workshops on a wide range of topics on self-sufficiency and sustainability. Chiras is also author of 32 books and several hundred articles on a wide range of topics, including residential energy efficiency and renewable energy, sustainable communities, green building and natural building. His talks are fun, inspirational and full of useful information.

Passive Solar Heating

Dan ChirasThe Evergreen Institute

Passive Solar Heating

Dan Chiras The Evergreen Institute

Passive solar expert Dan Chiras teaches how to design a highly affordable home that is heated and cooled naturally by solar energy. Learn the principles of passive solar design, common mistakes people make and ways to avoid them, and how to heat and cool your home for free for life! | , Speaker BioDan Chiras is director of The Evergreen Institute in east-central Missouri, where he teaches self-sufficiency and sustainability workshops on a wide range of topics. Chiras is also author of 32 books and several hundred articles on subjects including residential energy efficiency and renewable energy, sustainable communities, green building and natural building. His talks are fun, inspirational and full of useful information.

Chinese Greenhouses: The intelligent choice for year-round production

Dan ChirasThe Evergreen Institute

Chinese Greenhouses: The intelligent choice for year-round production

Dan Chiras The Evergreen Institute

Most greenhouses in the United States are an energy nightmare. We couldn’t have created a worse design. Greenhouses that most of us install are the least-sustainable way to grow food year-round, costing us a fortune in energy. In this workshop, discover a revolutionary new design for year-round greenhouse growing and aquaponics, the Chinese Greenhouse. Learn how to design and build a Chinese greenhouse to grow a wide variety of vegetables without outside energy. | , Speaker BioDan Chiras is director of The Evergreen Institute in east-central Missouri, where he teaches self-sufficiency and sustainability workshops on a wide range of topics. Chiras is also author of 32 books and several hundred articles on subjects including residential energy efficiency and renewable energy, sustainable communities, green building and natural building. His talks are fun, inspirational and full of useful information.

Cayenne and First-Aid Herbs

David ChristopherSchool of Natural Healing

Cayenne and First-Aid Herbs

David Christopher School of Natural Healing

What is in your spice rack that can save lives and heal in a pinch? Learn what common herbs and foods help heal common illnesses and emergencies that come up in everyday family situations. | , Speaker BioHaving been raised in the simple ways of natural health, David Christopher's interests grew beyond his university study. In 1974 he took his place by his father's side at The School of Natural Healing. His book An Herbal Legacy of Courage is a loving tribute to his father.

How to Heal Local

Dawn CombsMockingbird Meadows

How to Heal Local

Dawn Combs Mockingbird Meadows

The localization movement has successfully infiltrated our food culture. But why do we spend so much energy worrying about where our carrot comes from, only to head home and reach for a headache remedy that was made in a nameless factory far away? Shouldn't we have access to a solution that was grown or made in our own community? Local medicine economies are possible but require the support of empowered consumers, established growers looking for niche markets, educators, product makers, health care practitioners, retailers and much more. In this workshop, hear about the importance of sourcing your medicine locally and how to build a community to make that possible. Dawn Combs introduces several easy-to-grow plants and do-it-yourself home health care techniques that can help you keep health local, inexpensive, fresh and effective. | , Speaker BioDawn Combs is an ethnobotanist with more than 20 years of experience in her field. She is the owner of the herbal health farm Mockingbird Meadows, is a contributor for Mother Earth Living and the author of Heal Local: 20 Essential Herbs for Do-it-Yourself Home Health Care and Conceiving Healthy Babies: An Herbal Guide to Support Preconception, Pregnancy and Lactation.

Virtual Medicine Walk

Dawn CombsMockingbird Meadows

Virtual Medicine Walk

Dawn Combs Mockingbird Meadows

In the world of healing plants, there are popular herbs that almost everyone has heard of...and then there are those that have been forgotten. These are plants that were well-known by our ancestors but were overlooked as we began to depend more on Western medicine. Take a virtual walk through the windbreaks, abandoned railways and fence-lines where these medicinals still thrive. Listen to their stories while learning how we may begin to use their medicine yet today. | , Speaker BioDawn Combs is an ethnobotanist with more than 20 years of experience in her field. She is the owner of the herbal health farm Mockingbird Meadows, is a contributor for Mother Earth Living, and the author of Heal Local: 20 Essential Herbs for Do-it-Yourself Home Health Care and Conceiving Healthy Babies: An Herbal Guide to Support Preconception, Pregnancy and Lactation.

Home Health Care for Your Thyroid

Dawn CombsMockingbird Meadows

Home Health Care for Your Thyroid

Dawn Combs Mockingbird Meadows

At one time, we only discussed the thyroid in eighth-grade health class in reference to the victory over goiter in our modern society. Now we hear about this important gland in the news almost daily. Join Dawn Combs as she discusses how to approach thyroid health from a holistic perspective. Why do some thyroids overact and others struggle to function at all? How do we know when we are having thyroid issues and are their warning signs that can help us make changes before we have trouble? Learn to use simple food, lifestyle changes and healing herbs at home for optimal health. | , Speaker BioDawn Combs is an ethnobotanist with more than 20 years of experience in her field. She is the owner of the herbal health farm Mockingbird Meadows, is a contributor for Mother Earth Living, and the author of Heal Local: 20 Essential Herbs for Do-it-Yourself Home Health Care and Conceiving Healthy Babies: An Herbal Guide to Support Preconception, Pregnancy and Lactation.

Seed Libraries and Other Seed Share Initiatives

Cindy ConnerNew Society Publishers

Seed Libraries and Other Seed Share Initiatives

Cindy Conner New Society Publishers

Seed saving and sharing programs might involve public libraries, but not necessarily. Learn about promoting seed sharing initiatives in your community through seed libraries, seed swaps and seed gardens. Cindy Conner's book Seed Libraries and Other Means of Keeping Seeds in the Hands of the People is new in 2015. | , Speaker BioCindy Conner researches how to sustainably grow a complete diet in a small space at her home near Ashland, Virginia, and has produced the videos Develop a Sustainable Vegetable Garden Plan and Cover Crops and Compost Crops IN Your Garden. A former market gardener, Conner was instrumental in establishing the sustainable agriculture program at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Goochland, Virginia, and taught there from 1999 to 2010. Her book Grow a Sustainable Diet: Planning and Growing to Feed Ourselves and the Earth was published in 2014. Seed Libraries and Other Means of Keeping Seeds in the Hands of the People is new in 2015. Follow Conner’s blog at www.HomeplaceEarth.wordpress.com.

Grow a Sustainable Diet

Cindy ConnerNew Society Publishers

Grow a Sustainable Diet

Cindy Conner New Society Publishers

Cindy Conner combines her experience with GROW BIOINTENSIVE® Sustainable Mini-farming with what she’s learned through study and practice in organic gardening, soil building and nutrition since her first garden in 1974. Learn how she has put it all together in a way that works for her and get valuable tips for growing your own sustainable diet. With every bite you take, you vote for how you want the earth used to grow your food. Discover which crops provide the most food in the least space and what to grow to also feed back the earth. Conner’s book Grow a Sustainable Diet was published in 2014. | , Speaker BioCindy Conner researches how to sustainably grow a complete diet in a small space at her home near Ashland, Virginia, and has produced the videos Develop a Sustainable Vegetable Garden Plan and Cover Crops and Compost Crops IN Your Garden. Conner, a former market gardener, was instrumental in establishing the sustainable agriculture program at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Goochland, Virginia, and taught there from 1999 to 2010. Her book Grow a Sustainable Diet: Planning and Growing to Feed Ourselves and the Earth was published in 2014. Seed Libraries and Other Means of Keeping Seeds in the Hands of the People is available in early 2015. Follow her blog at www.HomeplaceEarth.wordpress.com.

Managing Cover Crops with Hand Tools

Cindy ConnerNew Society Publishers

Managing Cover Crops with Hand Tools

Cindy Conner New Society Publishers

Learn what cover crops are, how and when they grow, and which ones might work the best for you. You don’t need a tiller, and Cindy Conner shows you how to manage them with only hand tools. Cover crops included are cereal rye, wheat, oats, hairy vetch, winter peas, crimson clover, red clover, alfalfa, oilseed radish, cowpeas and buckwheat. | , Speaker BioCindy Conner researches how to sustainably grow a complete diet in a small space at her home near Ashland, Virginia, and has produced the videos Develop a Sustainable Vegetable Garden Plan and Cover Crops and Compost Crops IN Your Garden. Conner, a former market gardener, was instrumental in establishing the sustainable agriculture program at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Goochland, Virginia, and taught there from 1999 to 2010. Her book Grow a Sustainable Diet: Planning and Growing to Feed Ourselves and the Earth was published in 2014. Seed Libraries and Other Means of Keeping Seeds in the Hands of the People is available in early 2015. Follow her blog at www.HomeplaceEarth.wordpress.com.

How to Grow 35 to 40 Organic Plants Within a 2-Square-Foot Garden (With NO WEEDING!)

Shawna Coronadowww.ShawnaCoronado.com

How to Grow 35 to 40 Organic Plants Within a 2-Square-Foot Garden (With NO WEEDING!)

Shawna Coronado www.ShawnaCoronado.com

Shawna Coronado talks about the easy way to grow vertically and demonstrates how to grow 35 to 40 organic plants within an area that is smaller than 2 square feet using several different planting systems. Coronado also shows full-color photos featuring her extensive front lawn vegetable organic garden and discusses her creative, sustainable ideas for organic soil maintenance, water collection, sustainable and artful reuse of around-the-house items as vertical wall systems. She also gives suggestions for where to deliver your overabundance of vegetables. (She donates more than 100 pounds of food every season to the local food pantry.) | , Speaker BioShawna Coronado is an author, columnist, blogger, photographer and spokesperson who campaigns for social good. She is also an on-camera spokesperson and social media personality with more than 292,000 followers on her various social media venues, and more than 200 videos on YouTube with more than a million views. Her garden has been featured in many venues, including PBS television. Her organic living photographs and stories have been shown both online and off in many international home and garden magazines and multiple books. You can learn more about her at www.ShawnaCoronado.com.

The Hoophouse in Fall and Winter

Pam DawlingTwin Oaks Community

The Hoophouse in Fall and Winter

Pam Dawling Twin Oaks Community

Learn how to grow varied and plentiful greens for cooking and salads: turnips, radishes and scallions. Discover how to get continuous harvests and maximize use of valuable space. Hear tips to minimize unhealthy levels of nitrates in cold weather. Also, consider growing bare-root transplants for planting outdoors in spring, and listen to advice on transplanting indoors from outdoors in the fall. | , Speaker BioPam Dawling is the author of Sustainable Market Farming: Intensive Vegetable Production on a Few Acres (New Society Publishers, 2013). She is also a contributing editor with Growing for Market magazine. An avid vegetable grower for almost 40 years, she has lived at Twin Oaks Community in central Virginia for more than 20 years, growing vegetables and berries for 100 people on 3.5 acres, and providing training for members in sustainable vegetable production.

The Hoophouse in Spring and Summer

Pam DawlingTwin Oaks Community

The Hoophouse in Spring and Summer

Pam Dawling Twin Oaks Community

In colder zones, growers use the summer hoophouse for all those hot weather crops that struggle outdoors! But if you can already grow melons, limas and okra outside, you may be left wondering how to make good use of that valuable covered space when it’s hot. As well as heat-loving crops, this presentation discusses cooling the hoophouse, using the opportunity to tackle soilborne diseases or improve the soil, and other uses (such as seed drying and storage). | , Speaker BioPam Dawling is the author of Sustainable Market Farming: Intensive Vegetable Production on a Few Acres (New Society Publishers, 2013). She is also a contributing editor with Growing for Market magazine. An avid vegetable grower for almost 40 years, she has lived at Twin Oaks Community in central Virginia for more than 20 years, growing vegetables and berries for 100 people on 3.5 acres, and providing training for members in sustainable vegetable production.

Water Bath Canning of Seasonal Fruit Jam

Karla DeLong, N.C.Mountain Feed and Farm Supply

Water Bath Canning of Seasonal Fruit Jam

Karla DeLong, N.C. Mountain Feed and Farm Supply

Water bath canning is a wonderful way to preserve high-acid foods and make them shelf stable. This workshop covers all aspects of water bath canning, including technique, equipment selection and troubleshooting. See seasonal fruit preserved by making jam and canning it. Discuss old-fashioned recipes, as well as low- and no-sugar recipes. Enjoy a bite of sweet summer jam any time of year. It tastes even better when homemade! | , Speaker BioKarla DeLong is a food preservation expert and a whole foods Natural Chef. She loves sharing traditional food knowledge and inspiring people to be involved in their food on a personal level. Nothing pleases her more than opening jars of summer jam in the cold winter months. She is also the president of the Santa Cruz Beekeeper's Guild and maintains more than 20 beehives on her 10-acre homestead.

Growing Elderberry for Health and Profit

Terry DurhamRiver Hills Harvest

Growing Elderberry for Health and Profit

Terry Durham River Hills Harvest

Learn how to grow and propagate elderberries for the garden and farm. | , Speaker BioTerry Durham has been farming organically since 1978, and he started commercial elderberries in 2005. He has helped hundreds of gardeners and farmers start growing through his nursery and educational events.

Backyard Biodiesel: How to brew your own fuel

Lyle EstillPiedmont Biofuels

Backyard Biodiesel: How to brew your own fuel

Lyle Estill Piedmont Biofuels

Lyle Estill, Backyard Biodiesel, demonstrates how to produce biodiesel from used fryer oil and discusses ways of integrating the practice into your resilience efforts at home or on-farm. | , Speaker BioLyle Estill is the president and co-founder of Piedmont Biofuels, a community-scale biodiesel project in Pittsboro, North Carolina. He has been on the vanguard of social change for the past decade, which has placed him at the heart of the sustainability movement. Estill is a prolific speaker and writer, and the author of Small Stories, Big Changes, Industrial Evolution, Small Is Possible and Biodiesel Power. He has won numerous awards for his commitment to resilience, community development, outreach and leadership.
Bob Armantrout helped to manage four commercial biodiesel plants in Hawaii, Colorado and Texas before moving to Pittsboro, North Carolina, in 2007 to join Piedmont Biofuels. He worked as an instructor at Central Carolina Community College, where he designed and delivered an innovative two-year biofuels degree program. When he is not immersed in the fascinating world of alternative fuels, Armantrout gardens organically to maintain his sanity, and explores the world of mycelium through mushroom and tempeh production.

Home Poultry Processing: The art and science of micro-scale meat bird processing ... using tools you already have

Patricia ForemanThe Gossamer Foundation

Home Poultry Processing: The art and science of micro-scale meat bird processing ... using tools you already have

Patricia Foreman The Gossamer Foundation

Learn how to humanely, safely, sanitarily and skillfully process your birds. What to do with those roosters and older hens? Get healthy, high-quality meat and bone broth from your backyard flock. Topics include the power of knowing your meat source, how it was raised, fed and processed, the sacred significance of taking a life ... so that you can live, the science and chemistry behind skilled meat processing, processing equipment that you have ... or could easily borrow, hand-plucking made fun, super simple evisceration and an educational anatomy lesson, nutritional differences of meat from heritage vs. commercial breeds and cold shorting and effective freezer packaging for long-term storage.
Processing your own chickens for family food is a lost art in our culture. It’s time to bring back this old tradition and combine it with new techniques, so that poultry processing becomes common knowledge in homes and communities. | , Speaker BioPatricia Foreman graduated from Purdue University with degrees in animal science and pharmacy. She earned a Masters of Public Affairs (MPA) from Indiana University’s Graduate School of Public and Environmental Affairs.
She is the author of City Chicks: Employing Chickens as Garden Helpers, Compost Creators, Bio-recyclers and Local Food Suppliers. She is co-author of Chicken Tractor, Day Range Poultry and Backyard Market Gardening.
Foreman is the developer of the Chickens and You Training Series (www.ChickensAndYOU.com), leading to the Master Backyard Chicken Keeper Certification.

Eggs-traordinary Eggs: The science, tricks and secrets of eggs

Patricia ForemanThe Gossamer Foundation

Eggs-traordinary Eggs: The science, tricks and secrets of eggs

Patricia Foreman The Gossamer Foundation

Eggs are among the most nutritious, easily digestible and absorbed foods available on the planet. Eggs are so adaptable that they can be used for a variety of dishes. They create elegant soufflés, hold meatloaf together, keep oil and vinegar from separating in mayonnaise, and form crystals in candies. They spin magically into meringues and thicken smooth custards. Eggs build cake batters by providing the structural framework, and produce finely grained ice creams, enrich soups, glaze pie crusts. What other food can do all this? It’s said you can tell a great chef from a cook by the way they treat and use eggs. Learn the chemistry behind the magic of eggs in this egg-splicit, eggciting workshop. | , Speaker BioPat Foreman graduated from Purdue University with degrees in pharmacy and agriculture (animal science, genetics and nutrition). She earned a Masters of Public Affairs (MPA) from Indiana University’s Graduate School of Public and Environmental Affairs.
She is the author of the paradigm-shifting book City Chicks, and a co-author of Chicken Tractor, Day Range Poultry and Backyard Market Gardening.
Foreman is the developer of the Chickens and You Training Series (www.ChickensAndYOU.com), leading to the Master Backyard Chicken Keeper Certification.

Chicken POOP Power!

Patricia ForemanThe Gossamer Foundation

Chicken POOP Power!

Patricia Foreman The Gossamer Foundation

Chicken manure is an underrated byproduct of our feathered friends. This workshop explores science and wonder behind the creation, composition, usefulness, management and value of chicken poop. Don’t turn your nose up at the possibilities of micromanaging your flock’s poop to enhance your yard and garden (while feeding soil dwellers in the soil food web). This workshop is co-presented by chicken celebrity Oprah Hen-Free. | , Speaker BioPatricia Foreman graduated from Purdue University with degrees in pharmacy and agriculture (animal science, genetics and nutrition). She earned a Master of Public Affairs (MPA) degree from Indiana University’s Graduate School of Public and Environmental Affairs.
She is the author of the paradigm-shifting book City Chicks. She is co-author of Chicken Tractor, Day Range Poultry and Backyard Market Gardening.
Foreman is the developer of the Chickens and You Training Series (www.ChickensAndYOU.com), leading to the Master Backyard Chicken Keeper Certification.

Food Forest Gardening

Darrell FreyThree Sisters Farm

Food Forest Gardening

Darrell Frey Three Sisters Farm

This presentation focuses on designing productive perennial polycultures built around fruit trees and berry bushes. A food forest garden, based on permaculture principles, combines trees, shrubs, vines, herbs and flowers into a productive, ecologically sound and productive system. | , Speaker BioDarrell Frey, author of Bioshelter Market Garden: A Permaculture Farm, is the latest in a long line of gardeners and farmers on both sides of his family. He is a sustainable design consultant, permaculture teacher and owner of Three Sisters Farm and Bioshelter. The 5-acre plot of season extenders, gardens, uncultivated areas and pond is an ongoing research project in right livelihood and permaculture design.

Permaculture Design

Darrell FreyThree Sisters Farm

Permaculture Design

Darrell Frey Three Sisters Farm

This workshop focuses on the details of permaculture design. It presents a how-to introduction for assessing a property and creating a design plan to create a productive, efficient and ecologically sound landscape. The principles are suitable for small lots or whole farms. | , Speaker BioDarrell Frey, author of Bioshelter Market Garden: A Permaculture Farm, is the latest in a long line of gardeners and farmers on both sides of his family. He is a sustainable design consultant, permaculture teacher and owner of Three Sisters Farm and Bioshelter. The 5-acre plot of season extenders, gardens, uncultivated areas and pond is an ongoing research project in right livelihood and permaculture design.

Aromatherapy for Wellness

Billy GallowayNatural Options Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy for Wellness

Billy Galloway Natural Options Aromatherapy

This fun, hands-on class focuses on making aromatherapy simple and easy to use. Experience and discuss 17 essential oils. Hear not only what the oils do, but how to use them to achieve desired outcomes. Learn how to use aromatherapy to assist issues including sleeplessness, psoriasis, restless leg syndrome, hot flashes, lack of energy or focus, sinus problems, arthritis, fibromyalgia and depression. Come and learn about this wonderful natural healing modality. | , Speaker BioBilly Galloway has been experiencing the benefits of aromatherapy since 2006. He is a certified aromatherapist accredited by the National Association of Holistic Aromatherapy and is the eastern director of operations for Natural Options Aromatherapy. Before joining Natural Options, Galloway was the general manager of Gray Kennels and Security. Galloway, his wife, Jenny, and two children reside in Kingsport, Tennessee.

Daniel HalseySouthWoods Forest Gardens

Daniel Halsey SouthWoods Forest Gardens

Designing better plant guilds and redundant nutrient cycling systems creates a virtually unlimited resource for food production.
On some landscapes, growing plants is not a difficult task. Soils are moderately healthy and water is available by sky or well.
On the other hand, soils are more likely to be a challenge to plant propagation and even the richest soil can be depleted over time ... resulting in nutrient deficiencies that stress plants and lower harvests.
Join this session to study, strategize and practice building mutually supportive plant guilds that provide ecological requirements. Take a look at some extreme landscapes and solutions to build soil resources.
Each participant's plant selection process will be guided by their site conditions. Bring your laptop or tablet, and a sharp pencil. | , Speaker BioDaniel Halsey is a certified permaculture and professional agro-ecosystems designer. He holds a bachelor's degree in temperate climate polyculture design and a master's in horticulture from the University of Minnesota. Halsey is hired nationally and internationally to design private homesteads, intentional communities and broad-acre transition. He teaches in Haiti, Lebanon, Costa Rica, Canada, across the United States, Scotland, England and Australia. Halsey is also managing director of PRI/USA.

Growing and Preserving Unusual Fruit

John HolzwartMoonwise Herbs

Growing and Preserving Unusual Fruit

John Holzwart Moonwise Herbs

Everyone enjoys the sensual pleasure of tasting a new and exotic tropical fruit, but few people realize that they can taste these delicious fruits in their own backyard. Join John Holzwart of Moonwise Herbs as he shares tips for growing and preserving unusual fruit. The fruit discussed and/or sampled may include edible dogwoods, aronia, elderberries, sea buckthorn, autumn olives, pawpaws, figs and many more. | , Speaker BioJohn Holzwart is a gardener, wild forager, beekeeper and artist. He has a design certificate in permaculture, has studied cordwood masonry, traditional broom-making and has worked on an organic community-supported vegetable farm. He is proprietor of Brooms by Little John and Moonwise Herbs.

Choosing Herbal Remedies for Sustainability

John HolzwartMoonwise Herbs

Choosing Herbal Remedies for Sustainability

John Holzwart Moonwise Herbs

The vast majority of herbs are imported (some estimates put the number at more than 95%). Join John Holzwart of Moonwise Herbs and learn how to choose herbal remedies closer to home and have a long-lasting effect on your health and the health of the planet. | , Speaker BioJohn Holzwart is a gardener, wild forager, beekeeper and artist. He has a design certificate in permaculture, has studied cordwood masonry, traditional broom-making and has worked on an organic community-supported vegetable farm. He is proprietor of Brooms by Little John and Moonwise Herbs.

Tractor Maintenance and Attachment Options

Ben HouschYanmar America Corporation

Tractor Maintenance and Attachment Options

Ben Housch Yanmar America Corporation

This workshop provides an overview of tractor maintenance and how to choose attachments for different applications. | , Speaker BioBen Housch is the business development manager at Yanmar America Corporation for the Agriculture Equipment division. He counts more than 10 years of experience in the agriculture equipment industry. Housch has a 20-acre farm in Summerville, Georgia, where he and his family raise goats, cows and chickens.

Becoming Native to the Place

Wes JacksonThe Land Institute

Becoming Native to the Place

Wes Jackson The Land Institute

Come here Wes Jackson talk about where nature is the standard for agricultural and human engagement with the land. | , Speaker BioWes Jackson left a tenured professorship at California State University-Sacramento in 1976 to found The Land Institute in Salina, Kansas. He has written several papers and books, including Becoming Native to This Place and Consulting the Genius of the Place: An Ecological Approach to a New Agriculture. Jackson has been the recipient of several awards and recognitions, including a MacArthur Fellowship (1992), the Right Livelihood Award (2000) and the University of Kansas College of Liberal Arts and Sciences' Distinguished Alumni Award (2011).

Essential Oils for Health and Well-Being: Taking control of your health using Mother Earth's bounty

Connie JacobyWise Women Botanicals

Essential Oils for Health and Well-Being: Taking control of your health using Mother Earth's bounty

Connie Jacoby Wise Women Botanicals

Connie Jacoby introduces audiences to the history, usage and positive benefits of essential oils for everyday life. Learn the benefits of essential oils, essential oil blends and carriers, including what to blend and what not to, positive and negative side effects, and how to set up your basic oil cabinet. | , Speaker BioA nurse for 20 years in hospitals, Connie Jacoby knew there had to be a natural way to affect people's lives positively. She has been researching and working with health care professionals to find benefits, provide information and help everyday people take control of their own health.

Straw Bale Gardens: Breaking new ground!

Joel KarstenStraw Bale Gardens

Straw Bale Gardens: Breaking new ground!

Joel Karsten Straw Bale Gardens

Grow a garden without pulling weeds, without the heavy lifting and without getting down on your hands and knees (as traditional gardening requires). If you think the only place to grow healthy vegetable crops is in black dirt, come be inspired by the science and biology Joel Karsten offers in his presentation. Discover how to grow a bountiful garden using no herbicides, insecticides or pesticides. Learn to plant a wide variety of vegetables, root crops, vine crops and even beautiful flowers directly into your “conditioned” straw bales, much earlier in the season than you’re used to. Find out how any backyard, concrete patio, rooftop or driveway can become a productive garden. Hear the details of this revolutionary and easy gardening method that allows folks to create beautiful and productive gardens without lifting a shovel and without using soil. | , Speaker BioJoel Karsten developed the straw-bale gardening method more than 10 years ago. As interest grew, he became one of the most in-demand garden lecturers in the country. A pioneer and an entrepreneur, he has been featured in The New York Times, on national television and radio, and in dozens of other major media outlets. He has a degree in horticulture from the University of Minnesota and currently resides in Roseville, Minnesota.

A Gardener's Glossary

Janis KieftBotanical Interests

A Gardener's Glossary

Janis Kieft Botanical Interests

Open pollinated. Heirloom. Native. Organic. Do you wonder what these words mean or get confused by all the terms and jargon used to describe seeds and plants? This session enriches your gardening vocabulary, providing a better understanding of commonly used gardening terms (and what they mean for your garden). | , Speaker BioJanis Kieft is a longtime gardener and horticulturist with degrees in horticultural science and agricultural education from the University of Minnesota. She teaches classes on a variety of gardening topics and has written articles for the National Garden Bureau and various publications. Kieft is currently a seed buyer for Botanical Interests, a family-owned packet seed company based in Broomfield, Colorado, that specializes in high-quality flower, herb and vegetable seeds for home gardeners.

Creating a Seed Sowing Calendar for Your Garden

Janis KieftBotanical Interests

Creating a Seed Sowing Calendar for Your Garden

Janis Kieft Botanical Interests

A successful garden begins with knowing the right time to start seeds, both indoors and outside. This session will help you create a seed sowing calendar tailored to your garden based on frost dates, germination times, microclimates and more. | , Speaker BioJanis Kieft is a longtime gardener and horticulturist with degrees in horticultural science and agricultural education from the University of Minnesota. She teaches classes on a variety of gardening topics and has written articles for the National Garden Bureau and various publications. Kieft is currently a seed buyer for Botanical Interests, a family-owned packet seed company based in Broomfield, Colorado, that specializes in high-quality flower, herb and vegetable seeds for home gardeners.

Launch a Food Business from Your Home Kitchen

Lisa KiviristNew Society Publishers

Launch a Food Business from Your Home Kitchen

Lisa Kivirist New Society Publishers

Learn how you can start a simple food business from home with little to no investment while doing the things you love: baking, canning, pickling and more! Jump-start your freedom to earn by taking advantage of state laws that allow specific, “nonhazardous” foods to be made in your kitchen and sold to the public. | , Speaker BioLisa Kivirist is a national speaker, writer and innkeeper of Inn Serendipity Bed and Breakfast. Together with her husband, John Ivanko, Kivirist is co-author of Homemade for Sale, Farmstead Chef, ECOpreneuring and Rural Renaissance. Kivirist is a distinguished Kellogg Food and Society Policy Fellow, and a national advocate and leader for women in sustainable agriculture. She initiated and directs the Rural Women’s Project of the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), an award-winning initiative providing resources and networking for women farmers and food-based ecopreneurs.

Farmstead Chef: Organic eating on a dime

Lisa KiviristNew Society Publishers

Farmstead Chef: Organic eating on a dime

Lisa Kivirist New Society Publishers

What’s the key ingredient to eating healthy, saving money and stewarding the planet? A return to our nation’s farmstead roots of independence, self-sufficiency and frugality. Learn simple, creative tips for rethinking household food budgets, from preserving the homegrown harvest to stocking the kitchen pantry. | , Speaker BioLisa Kivirist is a national speaker, writer and innkeeper of Inn Serendipity Bed and Breakfast. Together with her husband, John Ivanko, Kivirist is co-author of Homemade for Sale, Farmstead Chef, ECOpreneuring and Rural Renaissance. Kivirist is a distinguished Kellogg Food and Society Policy Fellow, and a national advocate and leader for women in sustainable agriculture. She initiated and directs the Rural Women’s Project of the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), an award-winning initiative providing resources and networking for women farmers and food-based ecopreneurs.

The Woodstove/Off-Grid Lifestyle

Roger LehetUnforgettable Fire

The Woodstove/Off-Grid Lifestyle

Roger Lehet Unforgettable Fire

Learn all about woodstove safety and off-grid equipment powered by woodstoves. | , Speaker BioRoger Lehet has more than 30 years of professional experience, beginning at age 18 as a chimney sweep. He owned four woodstove shops before becoming an inventor of a new breed of woodstoves. His newest offerings allow people to not only heat but cook, bake, and produce electricity and hot water from a wood-fired stove.

30-Minute Farmers' Cheese Flavored with Herbs and Edible Flowers

Claudia LuceroUrban Cheesecraft

30-Minute Farmers' Cheese Flavored with Herbs and Edible Flowers

Claudia Lucero Urban Cheesecraft

Best-selling author of One-Hour Cheese, Claudia Lucero demonstrates how easy and fun it can be to make a delicious and simple farmers’ cheese in just 30 minutes. See the entire process from carton of milk to final cheese and then to flavoring and decorating with fresh and dry herbs and edible flowers. | , Speaker BioClaudia Lucero enjoys getting new cheesemakers started with Urban Cheesecraft and her D.I.Y. Cheese Kits. She has partnered with Williams-Sonoma on custom cheesemaking kits and recently wrote the book One-Hour Cheese, which shows beginners how to make 16 fresh cheeses via step-by-step photos. The book is found where books are sold and the kits can be found on www.UrbanCheesecraft.com.

How to Make Butter

Robin MatherMOTHER EARTH NEWS

How to Make Butter

Robin Mather MOTHER EARTH NEWS

See how fast and easily you can make a pound of cultured or sweet cream butter, using just heavy cream, salt and equipment you already have in your kitchen. In this demonstration, learn how much cream you'll need, the differences between sweet cream and cultured butter, and how best to store your freshly churned butter. | , Speaker BioRobin Mather is a senior associate editor at MOTHER EARTH NEWS, and the author of The Feast Nearby, a collection of essays and recipes from a year of eating locally on $40 a week.

The Many Reasons to Choose Grass-Fed Meats

Robin MatherMOTHER EARTH NEWS

The Many Reasons to Choose Grass-Fed Meats

Robin Mather MOTHER EARTH NEWS

Big Ag’s unsustainable and inhumane food systems are making us fatter – and dumber! Learn about the science proving that grass-based meat, eggs and dairy are much more nutritious foods, as well as better for animals and the environment. Plus hear exciting news about the latest research which shows that cheap, industrial food disrupts our intake of vital omega-3 fatty acids and other nutrients. | , Speaker BioRobin Mather is a senior associate editor at MOTHER EARTH NEWS, and the author of The Feast Nearby, a collection of essays and recipes from a year of eating locally on $40 a week.

Creative Housing from Dirt and Junk

Chris McClellanUncle Mud

Creative Housing from Dirt and Junk

Chris McClellan Uncle Mud

This presentation expands on the "Mortgage-Free Natural Cottages" workshop from previous FAIRS. Many people find mainstream housing choices frustrating because of their expense, or their industrial sameness, or because they are made of toxic materials. Creative people the world over escape the rent and mortgage trap by building or rebuilding or repurposing spaces using "found" materials from the natural environment or from the dumpster. The results are as unique and beautiful as the people who make them. Join us to discuss successful examples of tiny houses and cottages made from clay and straw, even converted sheds and industrial spaces. See what makes them work and how DIY can work for you. | , Speaker BioUncle Mud (aka Chris McClellan) raises free-range, organic children in suburban Ohio. He uses natural building as his soapbox to preach self-reliance and community empowerment. He can be found anywhere there is mud to play in.

Kids Can Build with Sticks and Mud

Chris McClellanUncle Mud

Kids Can Build with Sticks and Mud

Chris McClellan Uncle Mud

Come play in the mud with Uncle Mud. Use clay, straw and sticks to build little houses and sculpt beautiful objects from your wild imagination. This is a "Hands In" workshop: hands and feet squishing and mixing and making a big mess. Talk about how we can use these same materials to build benches, ovens and even houses. There will be water to wash off with, but be prepared to get dirty and have fun. | , Speaker BioUncle Mud (aka Chris McClellan) raises free-range, organic children in suburban Ohio. He uses natural building as his soapbox to preach self-reliance and community empowerment. He can be found anywhere there is mud to play in.

6 Inches of Soil in 6 Months with 600,000 Bugs, Part 1

John MoodyFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

6 Inches of Soil in 6 Months with 600,000 Bugs, Part 1

John Moody Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

Great soil ... Everyone wants it, but not everyone has it. So, how can you build great soil while also capturing waste streams to reincorporate into the natural earth cycles (and generate free food for your flocks and other animals)?
Some Small Farm started four years ago with less than 1% organic matter soil, on land that had been overgrazed year after year into little more than solid clay. The farm now produces bountifully from the application of soil-building principles to the land. | , Speaker BioThe Moody family farms and homesteads on 35 acres in Kentucky. John Moody discovered more than a decade ago that his diet was literally killing him with duodenal ulcers, seasonal allergies, and other health problems, so the family began to transition to real, local foods and local food distribution. He started to work to protect the ability to raise, grow and have access to these foods as a board member for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. Eventually, he relocated his family to 35 acres of land to put his learning into practice. He now serves as interim executive director for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and as a speaker at many local, regional and national events on food, farming and nutrition. He has two books forthcoming to help growers and gardeners, one on soil and one on small-scale farm infrastructure.

6 Inches of Soil in 6 Months with 600,000 Bugs, Part 2

John MoodyFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

6 Inches of Soil in 6 Months with 600,000 Bugs, Part 2

John Moody Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

See soil building, bed making, and chicken scratching in action!
This session complements the content of the "6 Inches of Soil in 6 Months with 600,000 Bugs, Part 1" talk, showing participants how to make beds, build soil and compost in place, as well as incorporate animals into the operation to achieve superior results with speed. | , Speaker BioThe Moody family farms and homesteads on 35 acres in Kentucky. John Moody discovered more than a decade ago that his diet was literally killing him with duodenal ulcers, seasonal allergies, and other health problems, so the family began to transition to real, local foods and local food distribution. He started to work to protect the ability to raise, grow and have access to these foods as a board member for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. Eventually, he relocated his family to 35 acres of land to put his learning into practice. Moody now serves as interim executive director for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and as a speaker at many local, regional and national events on food, farming and nutrition. He has two books forthcoming to help growers and gardeners, one on soil and the other on small-scale farm infrastructure.

You're Kidding Me: The kid-run farm and homestead

John MoodyFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

You're Kidding Me: The kid-run farm and homestead

John Moody Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

At every MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR where John Moody speaks, people ask, "How do you get your kids to run your farm?" From caring for cows and chickens, to collecting and safely splitting wood, the range of tasks children can do is pretty amazing, if parents do their part to help their family and farm succeed.
This talk is a mix of story, humor, tips and experiences from one family with lots of small children, a busy father, and a large farm and homestead, and how it all (sort of) works together. | , Speaker BioThe Moody family farms and homesteads on 35 acres in Kentucky. John Moody discovered more than a decade ago that his diet was killing him with duodenal ulcers, seasonal allergies and other health problems, so the family began to transition to real, local foods and local food distribution. Moody started to work to protect the ability to raise, grow and have access to these foods as a board member for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. Eventually, he relocated his family to 35 acres of land to put his learning into practice. Moody now serves as interim executive director for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and as a speaker at many local, regional and national events on food, farming and nutrition. He has two books forthcoming to help growers and gardeners, one on soil and the other on small-scale farm infrastructure.

Carbon Crazy: Hugelkultur, biochar, ramial chipped wood and more!

John MoodyFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

Carbon Crazy: Hugelkultur, biochar, ramial chipped wood and more!

John Moody Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund/Some Small Farm

There are a growing variety of techniques and tactics available to growers small and large to build soil, stop erosion, stabilize water supplies in the soil and more. This session explores the major tree carbon-based systems, their benefits and drawbacks, and their similarities and differences, with special attention pai
d to appropriate applications of each. | , Speaker BioThe Moody family farms and homesteads on 35 acres in Kentucky. John Moody discovered more than a decade ago that his diet was killing him with duodenal ulcers, seasonal allergies and other health problems, so the family began to transition to real, local foods and local food distribution. He started to work to protect the ability to raise, grow and have access to these foods as a board member for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. Eventually, he relocated his family to 35 acres of land to put his learning into practice. Moody now serves as interim executive director for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and as a speaker at many local, regional and national events on food, farming and nutrition. He has two books forthcoming to help growers and gardeners, one on soil and the other on small-scale farm infrastructure.

Solar Cooking Class

Paul MunsenSun Ovens International

Solar Cooking Class

Paul Munsen Sun Ovens International

Learn how to harness the sun's power to cook, dehydrate and purify water, and be better prepared for emergencies. See how practical and easy it is to use the sun to bake, boil and steam foods. Hear about the many economic, health and environmental benefits of cooking with the sun. The benefits of solar cooking include cost, taste and nutritional benefits. You can hard-boil eggs without water, and you'll never burn dinner again! Also, hear about solar cooking around the world. | , Speaker BioPaul M. Munsen is the president of Sun Ovens International, located in Elburn, Illinois, and a leading manufacturer of high-quality solar cooking devices. Munsen has been involved in solar cooking projects and taught solar cooking on five continents and has been involved with projects supported by Rotary International, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Department of Energy, Overseas Private Investment Corp. (OPIC), the U.N. High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR), the South African Ministry of Minerals and Energy, the British High Commission and the World Bank.
Munsen has addressed the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development at the U.N. Headquarters in New York. He is the past president of the Illinois Society for International Development, as well as a member of Solar Cookers International and the Illinois Solar Energy Association.

No Pressure Cooking: Using a pressure cooker for personal and planetary health

Jill NussinowThe Veggie Queen

No Pressure Cooking: Using a pressure cooker for personal and planetary health

Jill Nussinow The Veggie Queen

Learn the greenest way to cook (short of solar cooking). The modern pressure cooker makes 30-minute meals with no problem at all, using fresh, whole ingredients. Learn how to cook safely, quickly and best of all, tastefully. You can cut the cooking time for beans, grains and other foods by 50 to 70 percent, while retaining more nutrition. | , Speaker BioJill Nussinow, aka The Veggie Queen, is a cooking teacher, registered dietitian and author of three cookbooks: The New Fast Food: The Veggie Queen Pressure Cooks Whole Food Meals in Less than 30 Minutes; Nutrition CHAMPS; and The Veggie Queen: Vegetables Get the Royal Treatment. She stars in the DVD Pressure Cooking, A Fresh Look: Delicious Dishes in Minutes. Her fourth book, Vegan Under Pressure, is due out at the end of 2015. Nussinow has been teaching people about eating and cooking fresh food for more than 25 years.

Smoothies and Seed Starting

Nicole PeltzLuna & Larry's Coconut Bliss

Smoothies and Seed Starting

Nicole Peltz Luna & Larry's Coconut Bliss

Come to Smoothies & Gardening 101 with Luna & Larry's Coconut Bliss. Wouldn't it be fun to turn the most delectable moment of your day into a gardening project? Create tasty Coconut Bliss smoothies and then turn empty pints into planters! | , Speaker BioLuna & Larry’s Coconut Bliss is the Evolution of Ice Cream.
They source the finest organic ingredients to bring consumers a dairy-free, soy-free and gluten-free treat. Just one taste and you will understand what they mean when they say, “This Is Bliss!”

New Frontiers in Organic Gardening

Barbara PleasantMOTHER EARTH NEWS

New Frontiers in Organic Gardening

Barbara Pleasant MOTHER EARTH NEWS

Choosing the best crops and varieties is essential to growing great fruits and veggies, but you must also plan ahead to manage pests and diseases. In this lively “news-you-can-use” session, MOTHER EARTH NEWS Contributing Editor Barbara Pleasant shares a fresh crop of organic gardening tips and techniques to help you garden better than ever. | , Speaker BioOne of MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ most experienced garden editors, Barbara Pleasant (www.BarbaraPleasant.com) has practiced organic vegetable gardening for 30 years in a wide variety of settings. The author of numerous books (including Starter Vegetable Gardens and The Complete Compost Gardening Guide), Pleasant pens the popular Garden Know-How column in MOTHER EARTH NEWS (which won a Silver Award of Achievement from the Garden Writers Association in 2013). She lives in Floyd, Virginia, where she grows vegetables, herbs, fruits and flowers, and keeps a small flock of chickens.

Organic Gardening for Newbies: Avoiding beginner mistakes

Barbara PleasantMOTHER EARTH NEWS

Organic Gardening for Newbies: Avoiding beginner mistakes

Barbara Pleasant MOTHER EARTH NEWS

For new gardeners, the first three seasons are especially challenging because there is so much to learn. Which mistakes are you most likely to make, and how can you avoid them? MOTHER EARTH NEWS Contributing Editor Barbara Pleasant, the award-winning author of Starter Vegetable Gardens, explores the top 10 pitfalls for organic gardening newbies, and she shares proven strategies for success. | , Speaker BioOne of MOTHER EARTH NEWS’ most experienced garden editors, Barbara Pleasant (www.BarbaraPleasant.com) has practiced organic vegetable gardening for 30 years in a wide variety of settings. The author of numerous books (including Starter Vegetable Gardens and The Complete Compost Gardening Guide), Pleasant pens the popular Garden Know-How column in MOTHER EARTH NEWS (which won a Silver Award of Achievement from the Garden Writers Association in 2013). She lives in Floyd, Virginia, where she grows vegetables, herbs, fruits and flowers, and keeps a small flock of chickens.

Dehydration for a Healthy Life

Ruby RenardThe Metal Ware Corporation - NESCO

Dehydration for a Healthy Life

Ruby Renard The Metal Ware Corporation - NESCO

Hear about the history of dehydration up through the present time. Food preservation and the drying process will be defined. Discover how to get the best storage life for dehydrated foods, and pick up some easy dehydration ideas. | , Speaker BioRuby Renard has been a product demonstrator, new product tester and food stylist for the Metal Ware Corporation since 2001. She loves participating in all of the MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIRS. She enjoys shopping at her local farmers markets and seasonal festivals in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, as well as hitting her favorite bike trails along Lake Michigan. She cooks chocolate cheesecakes as birthday gifts, and has made more than 1,000 pounds of jerky, sun-dried tomatoes, kale chips, banana chips and cinnamon apple chips.

Taking Care of Business: Business law for farmers, homesteaders and artisan food producers

Elizabeth RichFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Taking Care of Business: Business law for farmers, homesteaders and artisan food producers

Elizabeth Rich Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Learn more about the legal issues faced by direct-to-consumer farm and food businesses. Elizabeth Rich covers choice of entity issues (should you operate as a sole proprietorship, LLC, S Corp, C corp, or other?); employment law issues affecting those hiring interns; zoning and right to farm issues; hosting on-farm events; and innovative business models. Bring your legal questions for the question and answer session. | , Speaker BioElizabeth Rich is a lawyer in private practice in Wisconsin, where she has practiced business law, real estate and zoning law, and administrative law, as well as civil litigation, for 30 years. She is the vice president of the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and provides transactional and litigation assistance to its members.

How to Milk a Goat, Make Raw Milk Cheese and Stay Out of Jail

Elizabeth RichFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

How to Milk a Goat, Make Raw Milk Cheese and Stay Out of Jail

Elizabeth Rich Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Lawyer, farmer and cheesemaker Elizabeth Rich shares strategies for effective and sanitary goat milking by hand to produce milk that is not intended for pasteurization. She makes chèvre, feta and ricotta-style cheeses. During the demonstration, she also discusses regulatory trends; legal distinctions between cheese production for private vs. public consumption; strategies for limiting government jurisdiction over cheesemaking activities; and enforcement case studies. | , Speaker BioElizabeth Rich is a lawyer with the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. She also raises goats and runs a farmstead cheese business on her 40-acre farm in Wisconsin.

Cheesemaking for the Homesteader: Using plants instead of rennet to make cheese

Elizabeth RichMisty Moraine Creamery

Cheesemaking for the Homesteader: Using plants instead of rennet to make cheese

Elizabeth Rich Misty Moraine Creamery

Want to make cheese, but don't have a calf's stomach on hand for rennet? Nature provides us with many other options. Learn which plants can be used to coagulate milk for home cheesemaking, when they can be gathered, how to prepare them most effectively, and which types of cheeses can be made in this way. | , Speaker BioElizabeth Rich is a lawyer with the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. She also raises goats and runs a farmstead cheese business on her 40-acre farm in Wisconsin.

Children's Goat Milking Demonstration

Elizabeth RichFarm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Children's Goat Milking Demonstration

Elizabeth Rich Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Learn all about how to milk a goat. After the udder and teats are cleaned, see proper milking techniques demonstrated. Discover how to strain the milk and store it. Kids (the two-legged kind) can pet the goat, talk to her and try their hand at milking her themselves! | , Speaker BioElizabeth Rich is a lawyer with the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund. She also raises goats and runs a farmstead cheese business on her 40-acre farm in Wisconsin.

Practical Pond Management

Bob RobinsonKasco Marine

Practical Pond Management

Bob Robinson Kasco Marine

Managing your pond’s dynamic environment can be challenging. This presentation touches on the major components of managing ponds on your property, including aquatic plants, erosion, algae, fish stocking and raising healthy fish. | , Speaker BioBob Robinson holds degrees in water resources with a fisheries emphasis and in biology from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. He is president of the Aeration and Fountain Manufacturers Association and a board of director’s member of the National Aquaculture Association. He is also a Board of Director for the US Aquaculture Suppliers Association. Member of the review committee for the North American Lake Management society creating a Reservoir Management document on aeration for the National Water Research Foundation.

Alpaca 101: All you need to know about alpacas

Alicia RoccoAlpaca Spring Valley Farm

Alpaca 101: All you need to know about alpacas

Alicia Rocco Alpaca Spring Valley Farm

Learn all about alpacas, what to look for when purchasing, what you need in land and fencing, what you need to feed, how to take care of injuries and illnesses naturally, and what you can do with the fiber. | , Speaker BioAlicia Rocco, ND, BCIHP has been in business for more than 40 years, caring for people and animals naturally using herbs and essences. She has a research farm that uses all-natural products for the alpacas.

10 Threads That Successful Startup Farms Knit Together

Joel SalatinPolyface Farm

10 Threads That Successful Startup Farms Knit Together

Joel Salatin Polyface Farm

Some farm startups flounder and others fly. The ones that successfully get off the ground share common characteristics. In this extremely practical presentation, Pitchfork Pulpit farmer Joel Salatin explains these threads. From emotional conceptions about the land to time and motion studies, this far-ranging performance gives everyone a farm road map to success. | , Speaker BioJoel Salatin is a third-generation, beyond organic farmer and author whose family owns and operates Polyface Farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley. The farm produces salad bar beef, pigaerator pork, pastured poultry and forage-based rabbits, and direct markets everything to 5,000 families, 50 restaurants and 10 retail outlets.
A prolific author, Salatin's nine books to date include both how-to and big picture themes. The farm features prominently in Michael Pollan's New York Times best-seller The Omnivore's Dilemma and the award-winning documentary Food, Inc.

Live Poultry Processing Demo

David Schafer and Joel SalatinFeatherman Equipment

Live Poultry Processing Demo

David Schafer and Joel Salatin Featherman Equipment

Learn everything you need to know about humane chicken slaughtering from experts David Schafer of Featherman Equipment and Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, including handling, bleeding, scalding, plucking and eviscerating. Honor the bird and hone your stewardship skills in this live, hands-on demonstration. | , Speaker BioDavid Schafer is the founder of the Green Hills Farm Project and author of The Greatest Life book series, has been marketing his pasture-raised meats since 1989. He is also founder of the Featherman Equipment company and lives with Renee DeTar in a self-built, off-grid, straw bale home in Jamesport, Mo.

Raising Happy, Healthy Chickens Naturally

Lisa SteeleSt. Lynn's Press

Raising Happy, Healthy Chickens Naturally

Lisa Steele St. Lynn's Press

Learn how to raise your chickens naturally, without the use of medications or antibiotics, by incorporating natural supplements, herbs and weeds into your chicken keeping. The healthier your chickens, the healthier their eggs will be and therefore the better for your family's health. This workshop covers natural feed and water supplements to boost the immune system, how to enhance your chickens' environment with herbs and edible flowers, specific herbs and how they benefit chickens, as well as suggestions on which herbs to grow and how to get started with a basic herb garden. | , Speaker BioLisa Steele is the author of Fresh Eggs Daily: Raising Happy, Healthy Chickens ... Naturally and the upcoming Duck Eggs Daily: Raising Happy, Healthy Ducks ... Naturally and she is the creator of the natural chicken keeping blog Fresh Eggs Daily (which was named one of Better Homes and Gardens magazine's Top 10 Gardening Blogs for 2014). A frequent contributor to various homesteading magazines, she has appeared on P. Allen Smith's PBS shows and the chicken reality show Coop Dreams. An aspiring herbalist and avid gardener, Steele lives on a small hobby farm with her husband and an assorted menagerie of horses, dogs, chickens, ducks and a barn cat, all of whom she raises as naturally as possible.

Vermiculture 101

Crystal StevensLa Vista CSA Farm / Grow Create Inspire

Vermiculture 101

Crystal Stevens La Vista CSA Farm / Grow Create Inspire

Learn simple backyard vermiculture techniques. Discover how to build your own vermicomposting bin with a trapdoor for harvesting worm castings. Hear about ways to increase crop yields by side-dressing and fertilizing with worm castings, worm tea and vermicompost. | , Speaker BioCrystal Stevens and her husband, Eric, are the farmers and resident artists at La Vista CSA Farm on the bluffs of the Mighty Mississippi in Godfrey, Illinois, where they enjoy the rural life with their two children. Stevens blogs for MOTHER EARTH NEWS, has contributed to Grit and Permaculture Magazine, and is a columnist for FEAST Magazine. She is the author of Grow Create Inspire, an Earth Stewardship Manifesto.

Family Adventures in Vermiculture

Crystal StevensLa Vista CSA Farm / Grow Create Inspire

Family Adventures in Vermiculture

Crystal Stevens La Vista CSA Farm / Grow Create Inspire

This hands-on, child-friendly workshop delves into the wonderful world of worms. Learn how worms benefit your soil, your garden and the world! Play with worms and learn how to sift your own worm castings. Learn all about how to set up a vermicomposting bin in your own backyard. The first 20 families to participate get to take home a small container of worms, a small bag of worm castings and seeds. Play worm trivia and win a worm prize. | , Speaker BioCrystal Stevens and her husband, Eric, are the farmers and resident artists at La Vista CSA Farm on the bluffs of the Mighty Mississippi in Godfrey, Illinois, where they enjoy the rural life with their two children. Stevens blogs for MOTHER EARTH NEWS, has contributed to Grit and Permaculture Magazine, and is a columnist for FEAST Magazine. She is the author of Grow Create Inspire, an Earth Stewardship Manifesto.

Restoring Life to Your Soil

Dale StricklerStar Seed

Restoring Life to Your Soil

Dale Strickler Star Seed

Traditionally, we have viewed soil as an inert medium that has no other function than to receive water and fertilizer and hold plants upright. We are now becoming increasingly aware of how soil is a complex biological ecosystem that can either be suppressed or enhanced by our management. Dale Stickler addresses how we can use soil biology to make our soils more tolerant of drought, more generous of fertility and less prone to plant disease. | , Speaker BioDale Strickler grew up on a diversified family farm in southeastern Kansas and received bachelor's and master's degrees in agronomy and science education from Kansas State University. He taught agronomy at Cloud County Community College for 15 years, then entered private industry, and now serves as an agronomist for Star Seed in Osborne, Kansas. He also has a farm that is conducted as a management intensive grazing operation, using restored prairies and woodlands in conjunction with grazed cover crop poly cultures.

Beekeeping Basics

Becky TiptonNortheastern Kansas Beekeepers' Association

Beekeeping Basics

Becky Tipton Northeastern Kansas Beekeepers' Association

Want to be a beekeeper? Learn the best practices for successful bee husbandry in the Midwest. Hear all about the merits of keeping bees, the equipment needed and location considerations. This workshop's overview of the first year in beekeeping takes you quickly through everything from equipment needs to extracting your harvest. The Northeastern Kansas Beekeepers' Association presents research-based techniques utilized by their master beekeepers. Their crew has more than 125 years of beekeeping know-how. | , Speaker BioBecky and Steve Tipton own and operate Country Creek Honey in Meriden, Kansas. Joli Winer and Cecil Sweeney own and operate Heartland Honey & Beekeeping Supply in Spring Hill, Kansas. All four have achieved their Midwest Master Beekeeper Certification through the University of Nebraska. All are actively involved in teaching beekeeping, including value-added products from the hive, throughout the Midwest and across the nation.

Growing Great Garlic and Perennial Onions

Ira WallaceSouthern Exposure Seed Exchange

Growing Great Garlic and Perennial Onions

Ira Wallace Southern Exposure Seed Exchange

Learn about heirloom garlic and perennial onion varieties, from planting to cultivation and harvesting at home. This workshop covers soil preparation, weed control, disease prevention, harvesting, curing and storage requirements for adding these culinary essentials to your garden. | , Speaker BioIra Wallace, author of The Timber Press Guide to Vegetable Gardening in the Southeast, is a Central Virginia Master Gardener and a worker/owner of the cooperatively managed Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. She serves on the boards of Organic Seed Alliance, Virginia Association for Biological Farming (VABF) and the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association (OSGATA), the lead plaintiffs in OSGATA et al. v. Monsanto. Wallace was one of nine co-operators with the Southern SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program)-sponsored Saving Our Seeds Project. She co-organizes the Heritage Harvest Festival at Monticello and speaks throughout the Southeast. She blogs at www.MotherEarthNews.com and www.SouthernExposure.com.

Extending the Harvest: Fall and winter gardening

Ira WallaceSouthern Exposure Seed Exchange

Extending the Harvest: Fall and winter gardening

Ira Wallace Southern Exposure Seed Exchange

Learn how to plan and plant for bountiful fall and winter harvests.
This workshop includes tips and timing for sowing, harvesting and keeping your veggies alive through zero-degree nights. Enjoy garden-fresh greens and sweet, crisp roots through winter until spring harvests begin. | , Speaker BioIra Wallace, author of The Timber Press Guide to Vegetable Gardening in the Southeast, is a Central Virginia Master Gardener and a worker/owner of the cooperatively managed Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. She serves on the boards of Organic Seed Alliance, Virginia Association for Biological Farming (VABF) and the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association (OSGATA), the lead plaintiffs in OSGATA et al. v. Monsanto. Wallace was one of nine co-operators with the Southern SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program)-sponsored Saving Our Seeds Project. She co-organizes the Heritage Harvest Festival at Monticello and speaks throughout the Southeast. She blogs at www.MotherEarthNews.com and www.SouthernExposure.com.

Karl WarkomskiProta Culture

Karl Warkomski Prota Culture

Get off the feed grid. Learn how to attract, raise and harvest the beneficial insect known as the black soldier fly on your farm, homestead or backyard garden. Start producing your own chicken and fish feed using existing waste streams, including food scraps, coffee grounds and brewery residue. | , Speaker BioKarl Warkomski has worked in the composting and bioconversion sector since 1994. He currently owns and resides on a 68-acre farm in the Piedmont area of North Carolina.

Use Your Biz to Change the World!

Bryan WelchB the Change Media

Use Your Biz to Change the World!

Bryan Welch B the Change Media

In the tradition of the yeoman farmer, today's independent businessperson forms the backbone of our society and the most powerful potential force for making the world a better place. Bryan Welch ran MOTHER EARTH NEWS and Ogden Publications for 19 years. Today he's CEO of B the Change Media, focusing on business as a force for good in the world. He shares the stories of businesspeople who are using their free enterprises to improve their communities, their country and the world. | , Speaker BioBryan Welch is a rancher and entrepreneur. He is CEO of B the Change Media, a multi-platform media company focused on business as a force for good in the world, which he founded this year in cooperation with B Lab and the B Corporations. He and his wife, Carolyn, raise organic, grass-fed landrace cattle, sheep and goats at Rancho Cappuccino near Lawrence, Kansas. For 19 years he ran Ogden Publications, the owners of MOTHER EARTH NEWS, Mother Earth Living, Utne Reader, GRIT and several other category-leading media brands focused on sustainability, natural health and rural lifestyles.

Make Mead Like a Viking

Jereme ZimmermanEarthineer.com

Make Mead Like a Viking

Jereme Zimmerman Earthineer.com

Learn to make your own mead (honey wine) using techniques that have been utilized by ancient cultures since the first discovery of bubbling honey and its magical effects. Jereme Zimmerman focuses on wild-crafting and spontaneous-fermentation techniques, but also discusses other mead-making practices. Be prepared for an engaging, interactive discussion on mead, Vikings, and the simplicity of fermenting your own honey-based alcoholic beverages. Zimmerman also talks about intermediate techniques and suggestions for experimentation. | , Speaker BioJereme Zimmerman is a writer, blogger and fermentation enthusiast who lives in Berea, Kentucky. An urban homesteader who was raised on a northern Kentucky farm, he writes about his homesteading and fermentation adventures for Earthineer.com, New Pioneer magazine, and Backwoods Home magazine. His first book, Make Mead Like a Viking, comes out through Chelsea Green Publishing in fall 2015.

Hours

All pre-orders include a FREE bumper sticker and 25% coupon for the FAIR bookstore! Oct. 20 is the last day to order advance Kansas FAIR passes. After Oct. 20 passes must be purchased at the gate for $30.

Children 17 and under get in FREE!

Wristbands will ship closer to the date of the FAIR. Wristbands, bumper sticker and coupon will ship together. Please print off your order confirmation in the event that your wristbands are lost or misplaced as the order confirmation will help you gain entry into the FAIR.

Order before Oct. 6 to receive wristbands in the mail. All orders placed Oct. 6 - Oct. 20 will be on Will Call. Will Call wristband holders must print their order confirmation to gain entry into the FAIR.